Dust-collector



No. 624,592. Patentedilllay 9, I899.

L. B. WHITNEY.

DUST COLLECTOR.

(Application filed Mar. 3, 1899.) (N0 Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet I,

2634 SWWM 8o 9 4:7 l. I? l (Bli h wa y THE NORRIS Pnzas co. FHOYO-LITHOHwasnmamu, o. c.

Patented May 9,1899

L. R. WHITNEY.

DUST. COLLECTOR.

(Apglication filed Mat. 3, 1 899.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

N0.v 62141592; Patented-May 9, I899. Li. R; WHITNEY. DUESST COLLECTOR.

(Application filed Mar. 3, 1899.)

(N0 Model.)

3 Sheets-Shani 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT @FFIon.

LEMUEL R. HITNEY, OF MILIVAUKEE, WVISOONSIN.

DUST-COLLECTOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 624,592, dated May 9,1899. I

Application filed March 3, 1899.

T0 aZZ whom it may concern:

v Be it known that I, LEMUEL R. WHITNEY, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State ofWisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inDust-Collectors; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to dust-collectors especially designed for use inflour-mills; and it consists in certain peculiarities of constructionand combination of parts, as will be fully set forth hereinafter andsubsequently claimed.

In the drawings, Figure l is a central vertical sectional view of myimproved device on the line 1 1 of Fig. 2. Figs. 2, 3, and 4 arehorizontal sectional views, respectively, taken on the lines 2 2, 3 3,and 4 4 of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a sectional view on the plane indicated bythe line 5 5 in Fig. 1. Figs. 6 and 7 are detail perspective views.

Referring to the drawings, (in which parts are broken away to moreplainly show certain details of construction at various points,) Arepresents the base or platform, and B B B standards or uprights securedthereto and rising therefrom. O is a ring resting on and secured to lugsb b, which project inwardly from the'lower portions of the saidstandards B, and D is another ring resting on and secured to similarlugs c c, projecting from the upper ends of the said standards. E is avertical annular casing extending between the said rings 0 D and securedthereto.

F is a transverse brace-piece or yoke extending diametrically beneaththe ring 0 and secured thereto and having a central socket cl, in whichis stepped the lower end of the vertical shaft G, the upper end of whichpasses through a box or bearing 6, secured to acrosspiece f, which inturn is secured to standards g g, rising from the upper ring D.

II is the floor of the annular casing E, supported on the lower ring 0and formed with an opening of a generally triangular shape,(corresponding to the area of one of the revolving buckets I,hereinafter described,) and- J is a hopper-shaped outlet secured justbeneath said opening in the floor H.

K and L designate, respectively, the hubs of upper and lower wheels,secured to the ver- Serial No. 707,577. (No model.)

tical shaft G, so as to revolve therewith, and h t designate the spokesand rim of the upper wheel, andj 7c the spokes and rim of the lower ofsaid wheels. The spokes are T-shapedin cross-section and the rimsangle-shaped,'as best shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7. The buckets I are openat top and bottom and are formed of metal sheets m, whose upper edgesare turned over the horizontal flanges of the spokes 72. and rim 1' andwhose lower edges are turned under the horizontal flanges ofthe spokes jand rim is. Strips of rubber or like flexible material it are secured tothe vertical flanges of the upper-wheel spokes h from center to rim anda continuous strip of rubber 0 is secured to the vertical flange of therim 2' of the upper wheel to form upward-projectin g flexible scrapers,and similar flexible strips 19 are secured to the vertical flanges ofthe lower-wheel spokesj from the center and projecting beyond the rim 7cof said lower wheel to form downward-projecting flexible scrapers, ashereinafter explained.

M represents'a floor-section secured, as by ears 4", to the casing Eabove the plane of the revolving buckets I and of an area sufficient tocover three of said buckets, (in the illustration given, wherein thereare represented eight of said buckets,) leaving anopen space equal tothe area of five of said buckets, and N represents a curved strip ofwood secured to the casing E and extending all around said open space,while q represents a doubled rubber or other flexible strip, whose upperhalf is secured to the under side of the strip N and whose lower halfrests on the top edge of the upward-projecting annular flexible strip 0.Braces O 0 connect the upper-wheel rim 2' and lower-wheel rim is. Theflexible strips '17. may be secured to either side of the verticalflanges of the spokes h, and in order to insure a close junctionbetweenthe outer ends of the strips 47. and the annular strip 0 thevertical flange of the rim 1 may be cut out in line with the strips 01,as shown in Fig. 6, so that the strip a will rest in said recess 5 andbear against the strip 0, and with the strip 19 of the lower wheel,which strips are designed to project beyond the rim 7c, the verticalflange of the lastnamed rim is similarly cut out for the reception andpassage of the strips 19, as shown in Fig. 7. j

v The buckets I are provided with inclined upper and lowerdeflecting-plates P Q, whose relative arrangement is best shown in Fig.1

and which extend from side to side of the buckets in opposite directionsand overlap at their free inner ends.

At a point within the limits of the floor-section M the annular casing Ehas an opening formed therein, protected by a tangentiallyprojectingcasing R, which in turn communicates with a pipe S, leading from a fanor blower (not shown) to form the inlet-channel ing over from thehorizontal center, while the lower half is centrally straight in avertical line, but curves inward at each lower corner, as shown at w w,the better to receive the currents of dust-laden air, as hereinafterdescribed.

The upper end of the vertical shaft G is fitted with a horizontalgear-wheel V, which meshes with a pinion 00 on a horizontal shaft WV,journaled in bearings 11 y in the upper ends of the standards 9 g, andthis shaft W carries a pulley X at one end to serve as a governor, ashereinafter explained. The top of the casing E is closed by a cover Y ofsuit able fabric, (such as bolting-cloth,) having a central aperture 2for the passage of the shaft G therethrough and held in place by a ring2, which clamps the edge of said cloth top against an upper verticalflange on the upper ring D.

The operation of my device will be readily understood from the foregoingdescription of its construction taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings. Dust-laden air is blown into the pipe S and,passing through the casing R, enters the casing E above the closefloor-section M, and strikes against the blades U, thereby revolvingthem and through them and their spiderarms revolving the vertical shaftGr and the buckets I, attached thereto. By reason of the peculiar shapeof the blades already described and their alternate arrangement on longand short arms the dustladen air-currents are all received and retainedby the blades and so divided and distributed as the blades are drivenaround in the direction of the arrows that the objectionable feature ofa strong centrifugal current is overcome and the dust in the air fallsby gravity and settles into the open-topped buckets beyond the floorsection M, and

through said buckets onto floor H,and through the outlet J into anysuitable receptacle or conveyer beneath said outlet, the air, free fromdust, escaping up and out through the cloth-covered top Yof the casing.The dust slides down over the deflecting-plates P Q in the buckets I andbetween them, while said plates serve as a guard against the dust beingcarried back upwardly by any possible lower air-currents, and such dustas. lodges against the under side of the floor-section M is brushed offby the upper flexible scrapers and the dust on the lower floor H isbrushed and carried around over the outlet J by the lower flexiblescrapers.

It is desirable that the shaft G and its attachments should not berevolved too rapidly, and to that end any suitable brake, retarder, orgoverning device may be used, that illustrated in the present drawingsconsisting of the pulley X on the shaft W, geared to the shaft G, asshown, it being designed to connect said pulley X by a belt to anotherpulley running at a comparative low rate of speed on some shaft orcounter-shaft of the regular mill machinery. Without some retardingdevice the air currents striking against the blades U U, as described,would revolve the shaft G and the buckets I I, connected tliereto, attoo great a rate of speed for the successful operation of my device; butby the means just described the speed of revolution can be controlled ina satisfactory and economical manner, while the described constructionand arrangement of the blades will break up and interrupt thecentrifugal current of air, whose tendency would otherwise be to simplywhirl around, carrying the dust with it, as long as the machine was inoperation.

Having thus described my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a dust-collector, the combination of a vertical casing, atangential inlet, a central vertical shaft, a series of blades securedto said shaft in line with said inlet, and a series of dust-receivingbuckets also secured to said vertical shaft below said blades to receivethe dust therefrom as said blades and shaft are revolved by thedust-laden air-currents en tering the casing through said inlet.,

2. In a dust-collector, the combination of a vertical casing, atangentialinlet, a bottom floor, having a dust-outlet, a cloth top forthe escape of air therethrough,a vertical shaft car rying bladesopposite said inlet and revolved by the dust-laden air therefrom; aseries of dust-receiving buckets, secured by suitable framework to saidshaft below thesaid blades, said buckets being open at top and bottomand provided with deflecting-plates; a floorsection adjacent to saidinlet and covering part of the space between the said blades andbuckets, and flexible scrapers projecting from ICC the framework of saidbuckets for 'engagement with the said floor and floor-section.

3. In a dust-collector, the combination of a vertical casing, atangential inlet, and a vertical shaft carrying blades opposite saidinlet and revolved by the dust-laden air therefrom, said blades beingarranged at varying distances from the said shaft to arrest the and adevice connected to the upper end of said vertical shaft to govern andretard its centrifugal current of the'air entering the casing, andreceive the dust therefrom, and

permit it to fall into suitable receptacles berevolution. 5 neath as theblades are revolved by the broken In testimony that I claim theforegoing I 5 and distributed air-currents. have hereunto set my hand,at Milwaukee, in

4. In adust-collector, the combination of a the county of Milwaukee andState of Wisvertical casing, a tangential inlet, a central cousin, inthe presence of two witnesses. vertical shaft, a spider secured to saidshaft T and having alternately-arranged long and LEMUEL WHITNLX 10 shortarms, curved blades secured to said Witnesses:

arms in line with said inlet, to-receive and be H. G. UNDERWOOD,revolved by the dust-laden air therefrom, B. O. ROLOFF.

